in the mind of a military wife

one day at a time

2006-10-19T08:04:00.000-07:00

last night i just about had a breakdown.
i have been on the phone with different people in the past two days and put on hold so many times....i really hate waiting "to speak to a representative"! i talked to...
my dr office (total time:45 min)
calebs dr (3 phone calls- for his circumcision that he still needs)
time warner (our digital phone service is not allowing incoming calls)
housing management (our freezer is not freezing the food)
anyway, i was making red beans and rice from scratch. i even bought a smoked pork neck bone to add for flavor. it had been cooking all day. bryan came home and it was smelling so good. i had left it boiling (for what seemed like not that long) and then i got on the phone with time warner. next thing i knew bryan comes walking in the living room looking like his best friend died. he tells me then that the beans were BURNT! i was so pissed!
then he tries to cheer me up by telling me that there is a possibility that we may be going to Virginia. so yea, normally i would be excited about that, but i just got used to the idea of us staying here and starting my training to become a doula....now we are moving? i was not very thrilled, but also know better than to take those things too seriously, because they can change at the drop of a hat!
so today i am really trying to have abetter outlook. we are going to get out (my dr appt) and try to find something fun to do.
aren't I just one bright ray of sunshine???

its been a long time

2006-06-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

since i have blogged. i (we-all three of us) are doing well. we all miss bryan like crazy, but know he will be home soon. he has already been gone almost 3 months!!! it does not seem like its been that long! but it has and he is ready to come back. (naturally) he should come home mid september or early october. either way i hope that he is here in time for garetts first birthday.

garett is getting so big and he is going to be a comedian. he loves to do things and look at everyones reaction. he says no to everything.

me: garett, do you like candy?
garett: no
me: garett, do you say no to everything?
garett: no.
me: garett, do you like that food you are eating?
garett: no.

he says it very matter-of-fact-ly. its pretty funny! he has an obsession with throwing things too. he throws everything he gets his hands on! it drives me crazy. i think hes going to be really good at sports.

in my head

2006-03-15T07:49:00.000-08:00

listening to: the today show and bryan cooking us breakfast
thinking about: the cart cover i need to make for bryans aunt
looking forward to: my ultrasound
wishing: things in life could be as easy as they seem before they happen
loving: my new maternity clothes from old navy :)
want: to go to sephora in the mall so i can use my gift card shana gave me about 2 months ago!

oh i forgot!

2006-02-16T07:47:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my lil sis and Rhonda! Rhonda, hope you are having a blast in Vegas! I will see you soon girls!

i also saw the babys heartbeat! it was just amazing that i really am pregnant again! i just cant believe that there is a tiny baby in there! AGAIN!

02.15.06

2006-02-15T20:43:00.000-08:00

well, i had an awesome valentines day! i came home from work, came in the back door to find my honey had a dozen red roses, chocolate truffles and a beanie baby valentines day mouse. It was so sweet. and naturally my hormones took over and i cried! he was up stairs taking a shower so i went up there, opened the door and just stood there. he looked out the shower curtain and saw my tears on my face. he said "hey baby. i love you" it was so sweet! i told him thank you and how much i appreciated it. I am so happy we had this last holiday together before he leaves. Gosh i am going to miss him!

whew....

2006-01-22T21:54:00.000-08:00

knock on wood... not much nausea for two days now!
i hope my body is adjusting to having a baby in there!
my first appointment is on thursday and i cant wait to see
my baby and its lil heart beating! :)

01.15.06

2006-01-15T18:26:00.000-08:00

i am really excited... i think we are going to be going to alabama in march before bryan goes to iraq! i cant wait because my family has not seen him since the beginning of 2004! everytime i go home i am alone or have had garett with me! anyway, i miss my family like crazy and have not been home with my new family as a whole yet! *hoping it all works out* I hope that bryans family is not too upset that we are not going there this time. *sigh*

random thoughts. . . . .

feeling a little chunky
but whats for dinner?
love that lil boy in the other room
hearburn
diaper change!
needing a hair cut and style!

*dont ask!*

Feeling that good ole pregnancy hormone!

2006-01-11T21:05:00.000-08:00

nausea, nausea and more nausea! i feel like its been a constant thing for about 3 days now! needless to say i am good for nothing right about now. i can barely chase garett around or pick up after him. i just keep looking at him and telling myself this will all be worth it in the end when i am holding my precious baby! *i cant wait for that day!* here is my first belly shot (6weeks).....

here is the second pic at 7 weeks...

January 9, 2006

2006-01-09T13:29:00.000-08:00

i took garett back to the dr today!
nothing big. just a little cold and eye infection again!
just gotta build up that immune system of his now!

I am so proud of my big sis for starting her journey to
becoming a nurse! today was her first day and i am
so extremely proud of her! She is an inspiration for sure!
love ya wendy!

SO its Official!!

2005-12-26T20:20:00.000-08:00

I am Pregnant! According to the little chart they use i am about 5w 1d! What an awesome Christmas present! I am so excited to be pregnant again!
We had a great Christmas though! it was so nice and intimate! we opened all the presents that were sent to us from friends and family! it was so nice! and of coarse bryan and garett opened up presents from "Santa".
Here are a few pics.....

falling clip

2005-12-16T12:57:00.000-08:00

here is the clip i kept trying to post on BIO that never worked!
this kid is a hoot i tell ya! hes just about mastered our stairs though, and its only been a two weeks! (notice the pillows i had a the bottom of the steps J.I.C.!)

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another dancing clip....

2005-12-16T12:55:00.000-08:00

Here is a video of Garett dancing in the car. he was mostly looking at me trying to encourage him to dance like he normally does! its still cute!

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Scary Santa

2005-11-29T20:43:00.000-08:00

Well, garett was not too fond of santa.
oh well, maybe next year he will get
excited about seeing him~ LOL

it was all too amusing for me though!

We are finally moving~

2005-11-23T22:14:00.000-08:00

so its official! on december 2nd we are going to go pick up the key to our new home! i cant wait! we are going to spend this weekend getting boxes and organizing our things. today we went to the leasing office to sign all the paper work and the best part of the whole thing is that they are going to pay for the move too! :) I cant wait to get into a bigger place so we will have room to grow!

update...

2005-11-20T20:11:00.000-08:00

so whats new around here?
well, we are getting ready to move into our new house. woohoo! i am so excited! i cant wait to spread out. our apartment is really starting to close in on us. now, i just need to start packing!
i went christmas shopping for garett! this santa thing is getting fun! last year he was about 5 weeks old, so there was not much to chistmas especially with bryan being gone.
work is going great! for some reason i was thinking once we moved i would just quit working at the childcare, but i have really grown an attachment to the girls, kids and everyone there. i really love the fact that garett loves going there with me and that they all have seen him grow. they are the only ones that have really seen my son growing. so i feel that we are very loved there too.
garetts girlfriend, Felicite, turned one last week. so we went to her birthday party on saturday. it was so fun. she was so cute on her birthday. i really love that little girl.
well, i think thats all the news we have for now. still waiting on the army thing to go through. bryan is still waiting to get some paper work returned from fort rutker. its proven to be a long process. i know they will accept him though. its just going to take some time.
oh yea, we are going to start trying next month for baby #2. that way bryan will be home in time for the birth like i said before. I cant wait. garett is the best thing that has ever happened to bryan and I so i cant wait to have another blessing added to our family! i love being a mommy!
here is one of the newest pics of Gman!

Here is a clip of garett at work and his new found ability! he loves this slide!

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Baby fever

2005-11-09T22:14:00.000-08:00

i want another baby now. we decided to start trying to concieve around the end of the year. I cant wait to give garett a little sister or brother. I dont care what the gender.... i thought i wanted a girl before garett came along, but when i look in his eyes i realize how in love i am with that little boy! i would not change it for the world now! I just want a healthy baby! my next pregnancy will definately be different. i am going to work really hard on not gaining as much weight. not that i got a ton of stretch marks or i wasnt able to loose the weight, but when i look back on the pics of me pregnant ..... I WAS HUGE! i cant believe how big i got! we are not going there again! send {{{{{baby vibes}}}}}} this way!

Been sewing my bunz off

2005-11-09T21:56:00.000-08:00

I feel like since we came home from NC i have been sewing like crazy! so far i have made:
1) two double cart covers
2) baby blanket
3) baby pillow
4) two pillows for my couch
5) bean bag cover
6) fixed my friends diaper bag that had a hole
7) altered dh's shorts
8) made a tote bag

and i think thats it! i am feeling all domesticated after typing all that out.

Well, garett is going through a "mommy i dont want you out of my sight and i want you to hold me while you are here" phase! he just wants to be right under me all day. he has been so snuggly and thats the best part. i am giong to miss it when he wants nothing to do with me huh?
Oh Oh .... we got a call today from housing and they gave me an address to go look at to see if we want to move in. I looked at it today and i love it! i just hope that we are able to break our lease here in our apartment with out having to pay an arm and a leg. i just keep telling myself that it will all work out! it always does. anyway, here is a shot of the front of the house. its a town house and its awesome. it has 2 br 1.5 bth and a garage! woohoo i cant wait to get off the third floor!

looks cute and cozy huh? i cant wait! plus it has a courtyard in front so garett can play in the grass......

feeling a little worn out....

2005-10-22T20:04:00.000-07:00

i am just venting here..... it is about 8 pm. Garett is in bed, bryan is watching the LSU and Auburn game and i am pooped! seems like i never stop and when i do slow down i crash! i got up early this morning and went to work. then as soon as i was done i had to go get a birthday gift for a party we had to be at aroung 2. then we came home. i carried garett up the stairs because he had fallen asleep on the way home. changed my clothes, printed out a birthday card, and by that time garett was up from his nap. then we rushed to the party (which was all the way in Lemon Grove ..about 25 minutes away) stayed for a few hours... then came back home. I fed, bathed and put garett to bed and man am i worn out! I dont know how i am going to do it when i have another child one day! its exhuasting i tell ya! i think that it would not be as hard if i did not have to climb up and down to my 3rd floor apartment 6 and 7 times a day! That alone is hard!
we went and talked to base housing the other day and as soon as we get back from north carolina we have to call them to see about moving. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we can get right in. Bryans grandparents are coming for christmas and i really really do not want to be cramped up in this apartment! i dont think that i could really enjoy myself if i knew that they were uncomfortable in a tiny apartment for their whole visit! i am looking forward to them coming out here though. I dont know that Willard has ever been to California.
we leave on monday night headed for NC. cant wait!!!

So we are home and back to normal!

2005-10-08T07:12:00.000-07:00

Gosh i have not blogged here in so long, i dont know where to start. First let me say that i had an awesome time in alabama. it was very slow paced and i got to visit with a lot of family and friends! Garett got to know some people that are very close to my heart. I got to stay at my dads house for a few days and that really meant a lot to me. I am so happy that Daddy, Dewey and Rachael got to know Garett a little more.

My daddy playing with his grandson~

We also had an early birthday party for Garett, which turned out so nice. It really was a lot of fun. Here are a few pics from the party...

Happy Birthday little man~

Just a few of our relatives in alabama....

Uncle Jerry with Garett~

In less than one week i am going to be in ALABAMA!

2005-09-08T21:21:00.000-07:00

woohoo~ i cant wait to see my family! i miss them like crazy! i cant wait for them to see garett too. this trip is very needed! i have been working and running around like a chicken with my head cut off. seems like i am the first one in the house awake and the last one to go to bed! mom says welcome to motherhood. guess she is right, we are wired to be able to carry a heavy load.
I am really proud of garett, he has been sleeping for 11+ hours a night~ ever since i stopped nursing him to sleep, he stopped wanting that middle of the night feeding. (THANK GOD) I can remember so many nights getting out of bed like a zombie and stumbling into his room to find him standing up crying for me.
he does not wake up at all now and its great!
he really has been a good boy lately. With the exception of a few moments where i wanted to beat him! LOL
its amazing how he has just completely taken over my life. he is all i think about and talk about! I just love him more than anything i have ever loved before. its a different kind of love than i have experienced. its a mothers love....

My baby is walking!!!!

2005-09-05T22:50:00.000-07:00

i cant believe it! hes growing up so fast! i knew he would be walking before he was one, but he is not even 11 months yet!
here he is on video!

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bryan and i have been in total shock all day watching him let go of things and take off walking! I am one proud mama!

Fire....

2005-09-05T22:37:00.000-07:00

Bryan and I were leaving the house today to go run some errands and when we walked out the front door we smelled smoke. Then we noticed there were ashes falling from the sky. Once we got on the freeway we saw there was a huge fire just over the hill across from our apartments.
when we got home we stood and took these pics from our balcony. We could see the helicopters and airplanes flying around it trying to put out the flames.

you can see in that pic how big the flames were at one point. they said that it burned over 100 acres. luckily before the sun went down they had it all under control. We heard rumors that it was started by a couple of kids. but who knows?
Thank God it is all out now though!

Look at my recent work of art!

2005-08-30T22:36:00.000-07:00

made it with some cool toy loops that snap open and close and a pillow that matches! I just wanted to have him in something that i was really proud of so i can advertise! the cover he was in before was the first one i had ever made so it was not very good! but i love this one! its one of the best so far!

He looks like such a big boy!

Can ya keep it down over there!

2005-08-30T22:16:00.000-07:00

Well apparently we have some party animals that live in the apartments we are facing.
Garett missed his afternoon nap today. So he was bathed, fed, and dressed by 6:45 pm and ready for bed. So about quarter after 7 i laid him down. His room has a sliding glass door leading to our balcony in it. Well, i got him to bed and i am sitting on the computer (my favorite pass time) and i hear some one singing.. ( 'and i wouldnt walk a thousand miles. . .' ) so i get up from my desk and about then i hear garett crying.... Oh was i LIVID! i know all you moms understand! so i walked out on my balcony and i could see that they were singing kareoke with there door open. <like we all want to hear there sad attempt to sing> Then i heard her annonce on her microphone "looks like we have and audience! there is some man watching us from his balcony!" Then one of the girls started waving at me. Now, my hair was pulled back so i guess i could look like a man from 100 feet away at night. I said "Hello?!?!" they could not hear me. SO i went and got garett out of bed and he was screaming, and I took him outside. Turned my porch light on and then they all came out their door and i said "Um do you see what you did? <garett screams louder because i was talking really loud> you are not the only ones living in this apartment complex!" So, i know i did not have to be blunt like that, but when you work so hard to get your child to sleep through the night and there are people always being loud and inconsiderate, it tends to shorten your patience! ya know? So anyway, they went inside and closed there door. NO sorry or anything. Which is ok, i was so mad that they woke my baby up that i went straight inside and slammed my door. This is not the first time that someone was being loud at night and in the middle of the week. ya know i could understand a Friday or Saturday night, but Tuesday night, come on! Plus bryan is working the night shift, so hes gone from 2pm til 4 am most nights. Which leaves me alone here at night!
Ok i am done venting! {thanks kelly!}
other than that today was a great day! i got a lot done off my TODO list!

Garett is off the boob!

2005-08-25T23:03:00.000-07:00

When i was pregnant i got this bump on my inner thigh. It has been there for about a year now and i guess me being the way i am ( i think i am part baboon) i felt the need to pick at it the other day. well that was the worst thing i could have done. It turned out to be a boil and it got infected and spread when i squeezed it. The redness and tenderness got worse and worse to the point that i went to urgent care last night at 9pm. they ended up putting me on some really strong antibiotics that is supposed to knock it out quick! well garett is allergic to these meds and he has been taking the bottle so well, that i decided that we are done. He is now formula fed only. Makes me kind of sad, but a little free at the same time. Now i am just engorged, which after having natural childbirth, it should not be a big deal. just feels like i have emplants or something! LOL
anyway, garett seems to be really satisfied and hes been sleeping better during his naps and everything. now i just have to teach him how to hold the bottle. he does not understand that you have to hold it up! here are some pics i took of him last night after his bath!

i just want to eat him up! here he is at work playing..... he really loves it there with all the kids and toys!

and this is one of him taking a nap on my bed. He is just so precious when he sleeps!

Crazy day at work

2005-08-24T22:45:00.000-07:00

OMG, today was the worst day i have had so far at work. I got there and was alone with about 20 kids including garett and twin girls that were 7 months old. Needless to say i needed some help. The other girls finally got there when they could, but the kids just kept pooring in! It was because today was the last day before all the older kids started school, so all the moms where trying to get that last workout it or something. Anyway, there were only three of us working and at one point there were close to fourty kids in there. It was mayhem! there were kids screaming crying because of seperation anxiety and one little girl even escaped out the door and i did not see her. It was just a really hectic day and i am really happy its over to be honest. I feel bad too because bryan and I have hardly seen each other in the past week or so. I have not had a day off in over a week so he and I see each other in passing it feels like. Ok well i am just one big ray of sunshine huh?
I am going to go to bed now and get some rest!
Lets just say that my day at work proved to be some really good birth control! (did i say that i wanted another kid so soon?)

My days feel like minutes....

2005-08-22T21:52:00.000-07:00

I am working so much lately that the days just seem to fly by me. they feel like a matter of minutes and i am bathing garett getting him ready for bed. I just got the house picked up and now i am doing my daily blog before i get some shut eye.
Today garett was so good at work. I went in this morning for a co-worker that was sick and then again tonight from 4-6. so by the time we got home garett was pooped from playing so hard. he really loves it in the child care.
Is so wierd because i am sitting here thinking that i miss him. he is right in the other room and i just want to go get him and bring him to bed with me. i remember when he was so tiny and we co slept together every night up until he was 4 months. then i started training him to sleep in his crib 1.) because bryan was coming home and our bed is only a queed and 2.) his crib cost a lot of money for him to never sleep in it.
i do miss sleeping at night with my little teddy bear though. we still take naps together sometimes.
well, off to dreamland for me.

See what i came home to....

2005-08-21T21:58:00.000-07:00

I came home from work today to find this.....

bryan agreed to watch garett while i went to work this morning and when i came home they were both on the couch together sleeping. it was so cute so naturally i had to go get the camera! lol. for some reason bryan can sit garett on his lap and he will go right to sleep. he defintaley would never do that for me! maybe cause i have the boobs!

they are so cute together!

I am so proud of my hubby!

2005-08-21T21:47:00.000-07:00

Well, last week Bryan recieved his air medal from when he was in iraq. i cant wait to see him all decorated when we go to the ball this year. I am just so proud of him. He also got his combat wings and several other ribbons from his trip to Iraq.

Here is a pic of the certificate and the medal.....

I am so blessed to have an awesome husband and father to my baby! It took us a few years to get in sync with each other, and now that we have Garett we both feel like hes the best thing that has ever happened to us. I love you baby and I am so proud of all your accomplishments! I will always stand by you.

He took steps!

2005-08-19T20:54:00.000-07:00

I cant believe it! Today at work, i looked over to see my baby let go of the wall and take three steps! He wanted to get to this little sit and ride truck that he always pushes around. So he let go and walked to it! I was so excited all i could say was oh my God, oh my God! I am still shocked that he did it on his own. he is starting to get so brave walking around holding on to things. I really feel like being in the childcare has helped him develop and learn quicker. He really loves being in there with all the other kids.

So not much longer and my little crawler will be up right for good. Eeek i dont know if i am ready for that! Hes growing up so fast! I am going to be going home to Alabama at the end of September to celebrate his first birthday and i cant wait for everyone to see him. A lot of my family has not seen him in person since he was two months old! (which seems like forever ago!) I will keep you all posted on the dates he and I are planning on coming. Then sometime in October, Garett, Bryan and I are all going to North Carolina to see all the Burkes. They are dieing to see Garett too. It should be fun. This way we can have our first Christmas together as a family with no traveling! I am really looking forward to getting our own christmas tree and not going anywhere! I will miss being with family, but we have our own little family now. Maybe mom and haddaway will be able to come celebrate with us.

my baby is going to kindergarten....

2005-08-19T08:13:00.000-07:00

i am just in shock right now because my Godson is starting kindergarten. I cant believe gaige is old enough to start school. i miss my two nephews and lil princess niece so much~ i was all excited about going home again because they were going to be living in Alabama. normally we have to coordinate our trips home so we can see each other. well, they moved back to cinci so looks like they are not going to be there after all. *sigh* oh well.
so i am hoping to fly home at the end of next month to celebrate garetts first birthday. and where did that year go? good thing i have about a thousand pictures of his first year! LOL :)
i cant help it, i am a picture freak! ya just never know if it will be the last picture you take. and thats the only visual memories you have.
ok well i have to go to work. now that i have rambled on and on.....
i will be writing more tonight. have fun on your first day of school Gaige! Aunt Chelle loves you!

Going away party for Becky....

2005-08-18T20:10:00.000-07:00

On monday we had a get together for my friend Becky (pictured on far left) whose husband is leaving for Iraq next week. She is leaving too. Her and her son, Taylor, are moving back to her home town in Texas to be with family while James is gone. Anyway, this is a pic of all of us with our babies. They have gotten so big. It was really amazing to see them all together crawling around. I remember when we were all at my baby shower pregnant.

becky on left, steph, me, emily, and alyssa.
same order as the first pic. :)

We are going to miss you Becky, although we did not get together as much as we would have liked to. You know how it is having a baby. Its harder to follow through with plans sometimes.

So, i realized when it was too late that Garett and I missed his aqua babies class tonight. Bryan has been working nights and its really going to take some getting used to. We had a good routine down and now its going to have to change. We will adjust though.

Here are some more pics from Tuesday night at Becky and James' going away party.

Garett doing his cheesy little smile....

Felicite Alexis... Emily's daughter...

Aisha walking!!! Alyssa's daughter.

And Taylor, Beckys little boy. Hes so precious!

A day at IKEA

2005-08-17T18:36:00.000-07:00

My good friend Kelly came over today with her son Dominic, who is the same age as Garett, and we all went to IKEA. I love that place! Anyway, we had a good time. the boys were good up until the end before we were done touring the whole store. incase you have never been to IKEA they have it set up where you go in the entrance and you have to walk through the whole store to get to the exit. good marketing scheme. so as we were at the end, garett grabbed my drink that i had sitting in the back of the cart (which i should not have left there in the first place) and spilled it all over everything in our cart that we were going to buy! ~with the exception of a few items~ we got that taken care of quick and were out the door, but i wanted to kill him! LOL
i got some good shots of them though. here is one of them in the car after the ride there. they both passed out.

here they are playing at the house before we left. dominic is just the cutest lil thing! and hes so smart! anyway i just love when they play together. i could just watch them all day playing together. its hard for me and kelly to get any sewing done when we are together because we just want to watch the boys play together.

I guess i am going to give in and blog....

2005-08-16T22:18:00.000-07:00

i used to think that people that blogged were kind of strange for allowing others to see there inner most thoughts, but i also feel like this can be a way for others to stay connected to whats going on in our household since we are so far away from home.

i have been journaling (writing in my journal) for a few months now. mostly for when i have a vivid dream, i like to write it down. which seems to be happening a lot lately.

Soooo anyway, today was garetts first day at aqua babies class. he had a blast! they just did games with all the babies and got them used to the water. I dunked garetts head under water for the first time. i was kind of nervous, but he came up and was ok. and i just smiled and made a big deal about him going under, saying YAY garett! good job! it was fun and we go back on thursday for the next class.

I am off to bed for now, its 10:30 and i am pooped!

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz